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After deaths, NYC music festival tightens security

Ted Shaffrey Associated Press

Posted:
08/29/2014 01:22:55 PM EDT

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Workers prepare a cooling tunnel, which will blast attendees with cold air while displaying an LED light show, at the Electric Zoo music festival venue on New York's Randall's Island, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

NEW YORK (AP) — Drug-sniffing dogs, peers watching for people feeling ill, a "cooling tunnel" and shorter days are greeting fans this weekend at an electronic music festival where two people died of drug overdoses last year, organizers said Friday.

The three-day Electric Zoo began Friday on Randall's Island with beefed-up security and an emphasis on safety. Festival-goers had to watch a two-minute video about MDMA, also known as molly or ecstasy, to get a code to activate their access wristbands. Inside, the event featured free electrolytes and reusable water bottles along with the pulsating sounds and unusual sights for which it's known.

"You have everything short of a CAT scan here to make sure everybody is going to be safe," spokesman Stefan Friedman said.

Water filling stations, where attendees can rapidly refill their water bottles for free, are demonstrated at the Electric Zoo music festival venue on New York's Randall's Island, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. The final day of last year's festival was called off after two people died from an overdose of MDMA combined with hyperthermia. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) (Jason DeCrow/AP)

The 5-year-old festival features such electronic-world names as artists David Guetta and Paul van Dyk, drawing thousands of people to a 27-acre venue. City officials canceled its final day last year after two fans died from MDMA overdoses combined with hyperthermia; several others were hospitalized with what seemed to be drug-related problems, police said. A Buffalo, New York, man was arrested last month on federal charges of selling MDMA last year to three Electric Zoo patrons, including one who died.

Summer weather can make MDMA use especially dangerous, as the drug can make a user's body generate a lot of heat and cause the body's salt content to drop dangerously low, said Dr. Lewis Nelson, an emergency physician at NYU Langone Medical Center.

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"Providing cooling stations and advice and observations for signs of hyperthermia are very important," he said.

That's the thinking behind the new cooling tunnel, a tent where fans can cool down, and the roughly 75 "ZooKeepers" — young adults, most with medical training, who will be paid to wander the crowd, look for anyone in distress and offer electrolytes and water.

A bigger security staff, including plainclothes police officers trained in drug investigations, also will be keeping watch.

A worker prepares to hang a sign detailing a list of prohibited items at the Electric Zoo music festival venue on New York's Randall's Island, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. The final day of last year's festival was called off after two people died from an overdose of MDMA combined with hyperthermia. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) (Jason DeCrow/AP)

"We're all looking out for everybody," Frankie Massa said. "So the extra help, the extra security, the extra everything, it's good because it helps everybody be safe and not get hurt this year."

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Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report.

Help centers, where attendees can get free water and electrolytes, can be seen at the Electric Zoo music festival venue on New York's Randall's Island, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. The final day of last year's festival was called off after two people died from an overdose of MDMA combined with hyperthermia. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) (Jason DeCrow/AP)

Scanners which will validate code-activated wristbands worn by attendees are set up at the entrance at the Electric Zoo music festival venue on New York's Randall's Island, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014. Attendees receive their activation codes by watching a public service announcement online before arriving at the event. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) (Jason DeCrow/AP)

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